Dalmatians have the highest incidence of deafness among dog breeds. It is estimated that 30% are born deaf in one or both ears. We have taken a number of deaf dogs into rescue over the years, and placed them with great success. We believe they deserve a chance to live out their lives in loving homes, where they are well cared for and understood.

Deaf dogs have four other senses which serve them well and they possess the full range of canine emotions. They enjoy the world and the company of their own species. Like other dogs, they love and are devoted to the humans in their lives.

Deaf dogs are capable of being trained and learn in the same way that other dogs learn, through operant and classical conditioning. They are experts at reading our body language, and experts at using their nose.

Please visit our pages on Facebook or Google+ for more information about deafness in Dalmatians and about living with deaf dogs.

Last week we took a very handsome four-year-old boy into rescue. He had been relinquished to a shelter in Chicago earlier in the week. A volunteer had contacted us about him. Although she knew little about this dog, she said he seemed to be a very nice boy. We agreed to take him. One of our volunteers drove to Chicago to pick him up.

Dalmatian in Chicago shelter

Most of our Dalmatians come from shelters, and often we know little about them. Animal control is run by counties, and every shelter is run differently. Sometimes the shelter has a veterinarian on staff, as well as experienced employees and volunteers who are trained to do temperament testing. More often, there is no veterinarian, few employees, and many volunteers, all of whom may love animals but who have little or no experience in judging temperaments or behavior.[click to continue…]

Trainer Tails
Trainer Tails, by Drayton Michaels CTC, is an ongoing series of stories from actual events involving professional dog training scenarios or from personal dog training sessions. The focus of these stories will be to highlight . . .